Subwoofers
Electro-Voice ELX200-18SP Review: The First Subwoofer
Quick answer
Buy the ELX200-18SP if this is your church’s first subwoofer and you want cardioid presets and fly points for about $1,099. Skip it if you run a large room at high level every week, because 1,200 watts is a third of what the flagship cabinets bring.
The ELX200-18SP is the right subwoofer for a growing contemporary church buying low end for the first time, where cardioid presets and fly points at this price are genuinely unusual. It is the wrong subwoofer for a large room running loud every Sunday, where its amplifier will be the limit and a bigger cabinet was the cheaper purchase in the end.
This review is drawn from published specifications, manufacturer figures and the consensus of verified owner reviews, not hands-on testing. This cabinet occupies a specific and useful place: serious features at the price where churches actually buy.
On this page
What you get at this price that you usually do not
Two features normally reserved for cabinets costing twice as much. The first is cardioid presets, which let a pair of these cancel rear-radiated low frequency energy so the platform stays clean and the congregation gets the bass. In a church with open microphones that is the difference between a subwoofer that helps and one that makes every vocal thick.
The second is fly points, which means the subwoofer can be part of a permanent flown system rather than a box on the floor. Most churches will ground-stack anyway, but the option matters in rooms with no floor space. See the subwoofer roundup for the field and the sizing calculator for how many you need.
Published specifications
Read the amplifier figure as the honest ceiling on this cabinet, and the feature list as what makes it good value anyway.
The ELX200-18SP pairs a 1,200 watt amplifier with an 18 inch driver, cardioid presets and fly points, at a catalog price near $1,099.
| Specification | Figure |
|---|---|
| Amplifier power, peak | 1,200 watts |
| Driver | 18 inch |
| Onboard DSP | Yes, with cardioid presets |
| Fly points | Yes |
| Catalog price | $1,099.00 |
Figures are Electro-Voice’s published specifications for the ELX200 series. Nothing here was measured on this site.
The limitation: 1,200 watts is a real ceiling
An 18 inch driver needs power to control it, and 1,200 watts peak is modest for a cabinet this size. In a 300 seat room at blended service levels that is ample. In a 700 seat room with a loud contemporary band, a single ELX200-18SP will be running into its limiter regularly, and a limiter working hard on a subwoofer sounds like the low end compressing and losing definition exactly when the song gets big.
The honest planning advice is to treat this as a two-box product in a large room: a pair gives you the cardioid behaviour it advertises and the headroom the amplifier alone does not. If your room is genuinely large and loud, price a pair of these against one KS118 before assuming the cheaper cabinet is cheaper.
What owners consistently report
Published owner reviews consistently call this cabinet excellent value, with the DSP presets and the general ease of setup mentioned most often. Owners adding a first subwoofer to an existing pair of mains describe the improvement as substantial, which is the expected result when 12 inch cabinets stop being asked to reproduce a kick drum.
The consistent criticisms are weight, output under sustained high level, and the usual observation that one subwoofer produced uneven coverage until it was moved. Reliability reports are good, and the cardioid presets draw specific praise from owners in rooms with open platform microphones.
Alternatives worth considering instead
Step-up alternative, because large rooms outgrow this: the KS118 at $2,199.99 triples the amplifier power and reaches lower, and is the correct cabinet for a large contemporary room.
Smaller pick, because portability wins: the Yamaha DXS12 MKII at $969.99 has cardioid mode in a 12 inch cabinet light enough for one volunteer to move.
Budget pick, because you may already have amplifier channels: the JBL JRX218S at $680.00 is a passive 18 for a system with a spare amplifier channel in the rack.
Who should buy it, and who should not
Buy it if this is your first subwoofer, if your room is 200 to 500 seats, and if the worship band has outgrown what your mains can do below 60 Hz. Buy two if the room is larger or if you want the cardioid behaviour to work as designed.
Do not buy it for a speech-led service, where it will add mud and nothing else. Read subwoofer versus no subwoofer before spending, and if the mains themselves are the limitation look at powered speakers for churches first, because a subwoofer under weak mains fixes nothing.
Sources
- Electro-Voice ELX200 series published specification sheet
- Electro-Voice ELX200 subwoofer cardioid configuration documentation
- Consensus of verified owner reviews published on major retailer listings
Frequently asked questions
Is one ELX200-18SP enough for a 400 seat church?
For a blended service, usually yes. For full contemporary worship at contemporary levels, one box will be working hard and a pair gives both headroom and the cardioid behaviour the presets promise. A single subwoofer also produces less even coverage across the room, which congregations notice as seats with too much bass and seats with none.
ELX200-18SP or QSC KS118?
The Electro-Voice is the first subwoofer most churches should buy: cardioid presets and fly points for about half the price. The KS118 has three times the amplifier power and reaches lower, and belongs in a large room with a loud band. Compare a pair of ELX cabinets against one KS118 before deciding, because the pair often wins.
Should the subwoofer be flown or on the floor?
On the floor in almost every church. Low frequencies couple to the floor and to the room, and a ground-stacked subwoofer gives more output for the same power. Flying is for rooms with no usable floor space, and it needs a structural engineer or certified rigger, rated hardware and a secondary safety like any other flown loudspeaker.
What crossover frequency should a church use?
A common starting point is around 80 to 100 Hz, set in the loudspeaker processor or the mixer rather than left to chance, so the mains stop working below the crossover and the subwoofer starts. Getting this right is what stops the two cabinets fighting in the same octave, which is a common cause of a muddy result after adding a subwoofer.
Will a subwoofer make feedback worse?
It can, if platform microphones are picking up low frequency energy from the cabinet, which is exactly what the cardioid presets are designed to reduce. It is another reason to place subwoofers thoughtfully rather than wherever there is room. Our guide to eliminating feedback covers the interaction between stage energy and open microphones.
Researched, not professional advice. This page is compiled from published manufacturer specifications, operator manuals, FCC rules, published standards and owner-review consensus, not hands-on testing. Sound system design, rigging loudspeakers overhead, and any electrical work are jobs for a qualified professional: have flown loudspeakers and their attachment points signed off by a structural engineer or a certified rigger, and have all wiring done by a licensed electrician to your local code. Wireless microphone rules change, so confirm the current FCC position before buying. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.